The global launch of Clash of Critters brought a huge wave of players trying to figure out which Tataris are actually worth investing resources into early on. After spending a lot of time testing different lineups, evolutions, and lane setups, one thing became very clear fast: not every character scales equally, and some units completely outperform others once their evolutions start unlocking extra effects.
A lot of newer players make the mistake of only looking at raw rarity or damage numbers, but honestly, utility effects like:
- Slow
- Knockback
- Paralysis
- Fragile
- AoE pressure
are what really separate average units from the top-tier carries.
Some characters completely dominate lanes while others start falling apart the moment enemy waves become faster and tankier later on.
S Tier Tataris
These are the strongest overall characters currently in the game. Most of them either have:
- Amazing crowd control
- Strong AoE
- Incredible scaling evolutions
- Reliable debuffs
- Consistent late-game value
S Tier Characters
- Buddy
- Dug
- Grup
- Pun
- Chip
- Taptail
- Dropit
- Vault F
- Goonbug
- Pyrop
- Zapper
- Zaplet
- Frugaling
- Mask Fry
- Mantine
- Ash Larva
- Cheerling
- Ceiling
- Soup Hog
- Frostnip
- Waddled Dew
- Cactto Bud
These are the safest long-term investments right now and honestly form the core of most strong teams.
A Tier Characters
These units are still very strong and can absolutely carry content, but they usually require:
- Better team setups
- Specific synergies
- More investment
- Proper positioning
A Tier Characters
- Spark Heat
- Ribbler
- Gibbler
- Chard
- Snail
- Tinder Cub
Most of these units become noticeably stronger once players build proper elemental combinations around them.
B Tier Characters
These characters are usable, but they usually feel either:
- Too situational
- Too inconsistent
- Outclassed by stronger alternatives
B Tier Characters
- Zapuni
- Fumekit
- Drillo
- Vulkit
- Funglet
- Blue Flick
- Gopher
- Rubble
- Humbug
- Kid Kazap
- Llama
- Play Meow
- Fluffle
Some of these can still work during early progression, but most players eventually replace them later.
D Tier Characters
These are currently the weakest overall performers.
D Tier Characters
- Joey
- Lolia
- Lully
- Skinletit
Most of these suffer from:
- Poor range
- Weak scaling
- Clunky abilities
- Bad survivability
- Awkward mechanics
Honestly, some of them feel good on paper but perform terribly once enemy pressure increases.
Goonbug Review
One of the best free characters players can get early is:
- Goonbug
This unit honestly surprised me a lot during testing.
Even at early evolution levels, Goonbug already gets:
- Invisibility
- Dash attacks
- AoE line damage
Once evolved further into Beetle Knight, the unit becomes even crazier because it adds:
- Fragile debuff
- Knockback
- Better AoE pressure
For a free or early-game accessible unit, Goonbug performs way above expectations.
Honestly, if someone is starting fresh on global launch, this is one of the safest early investments possible.
Vault F Review
Vault F is easily one of the strongest electric DPS units currently available.
The reason this character feels so strong is because of:
- Piercing attacks
- Paralysis effects
- Multi-target pressure
The stun spear ability launches lightning attacks that pierce enemies while inflicting paralysis.
That combination is insanely valuable because enemies:
- Take damage
- Lose momentum
- Get crowd controlled
Once evolutions unlock, the piercing sometimes continues through entire enemy lines which turns Vault F into one of the best lane-clearing units in the game.
Honestly, this character scales ridiculously hard later on.
Frostnip Review
Frostnip is one of the best utility-focused water units.
The reason Frostnip performs so well is simple:
- Slow effects are incredibly powerful in tower defense games
The ice block skill slows advancing enemies which gives every other unit on the field more time to:
- Attack
- Build damage
- Prevent lane collapses
After using Frostnip for several difficult waves myself, the difference in survivability honestly becomes very noticeable.
Slowing enemies may not look flashy compared to giant crits or explosions, but utility like this wins difficult stages consistently.
Pyrop Review
Pyrop is honestly one of the craziest fire DPS characters right now.
The Pyro Pillar ability:
- Summons AoE fire pillars
- Deals massive damage
- Applies weak debuffs
Once higher evolutions unlock, Pyrop starts outputting absurd AoE pressure across multiple enemies at once.
This unit feels especially strong during:
- Boss stages
- Dense enemy waves
- Long survival matches
If someone wants a late-game fire carry, Pyrop is absolutely worth chasing.
Zapper Review
Zapper is another incredible electric unit because of:
- AoE damage
- Knockback
- Crowd control
The knockback effect is honestly what makes the character stand out.
Any ability that interrupts enemy movement becomes extremely valuable later because stronger enemy waves can overwhelm lanes very quickly otherwise.
Zapper consistently helps buy extra time for the rest of the team to keep attacking safely.
Why Guardians Feel Weak Right Now
One thing I noticed while testing many teams is that several guardian-type melee units honestly feel underwhelming compared to ranged DPS characters.
The biggest issue is:
- Range limitations
Characters like Joey need enemies practically standing on top of them before attacking properly.
That creates huge problems because:
- They absorb damage too early
- They get overwhelmed quickly
- Their AoE often activates too late
Until balance changes happen, many melee guardians simply feel weaker than ranged crowd-control setups.
Joey Review
Joey currently struggles heavily because:
- Melee range is tiny
- Survivability feels weak
- Damage output is inconsistent
Even though the jab flurry attack technically deals AoE damage, enemies often pressure Joey too hard before the ability matters.
Honestly, this character feels like one of the weakest frontline options currently available.
Lolia Review
Lolia has one of the strangest abilities in the entire game.
The unit:
- Drains HP from healthy allies
- Boosts orb damage
- Heals lower HP allies
On paper this sounds interesting, but during actual gameplay it creates way too many awkward situations.
I had several matches where:
- Healthy tanks lost HP unexpectedly
- Healing went to the wrong lane
- Frontlines collapsed because of health redistribution
The mechanic feels overly gimmicky compared to more reliable support units.
Spark Heat Review
Spark Heat sits in a strange middle ground.
The character can become very strong inside proper team setups because:
- It buffs nearby allies
- Grants charged effects
- Provides support scaling
However, without nearby allies, the character becomes significantly weaker.
That means positioning matters heavily here.
Personally, I think Spark Heat works best in coordinated elemental teams rather than random mixed lineups.
Rubble Review
Rubble is another character that feels confused design-wise.
Even though the character is technically classified as a tank, the abilities feel much more like:
- DPS attacks
- Beam pressure
- Offensive skills
The problem is the survivability and frontline utility simply are not strong enough to justify the tank role properly.
Compared to stronger tanks, Rubble honestly feels awkward and inconsistent.
Best Early Game Characters
For newer players starting global launch, these are probably the safest early priorities:
Best Beginner Picks
- Goonbug
- Frostnip
- Vault F
- Zapper
These units provide:
- Reliable scaling
- Strong utility
- Useful evolutions
- Great lane control
Best Endgame Characters
For late-game progression and harder content, the strongest overall carries currently feel like:
Best Endgame Picks
- Pyrop
- Vault F
- Goonbug
- Frostnip
- Zapper
These units continue scaling extremely well even after enemy HP starts becoming massive.